<p>Are you looking for a book title to add to your Christmas list? Ask for 11/22/63 by Stephen King and then join us for our February discussion!</p>
<p>11/22/63 is a departure from Stephen Kings usual horror genre it is a historical novel with a time-traveling twist, as the protagonist goes back to 1963 to try to prevent the Kennedy assassination. King spent years doing research for the novel, and had this to say about the results: This might be a book where we really have a chance to get an audience who’s not my ordinary audience. Instead of people who read horror stories, people who read The Help or People of the Book might like this book." </p>
<p>This is a lengthy book, so you might want to get an early start on it, but those whove read it say that the story moves along extraordinarily quickly. Besides, the endless month of January looms, so its a good time to curl up with a hefty novel that will carry you out of the winter doldrums. </p>
<p>Have a Merry Christmas and please come back and join us on February 1st!</p>
<p>I asked “Santa” for this, but if I’m lucky I can start it before Xmas. Only one person is ahead of me on the hold list at the library. </p>
<p>I’m fortunate, in that our public library doesn’t have long wait lists for many books. I checked out our last selection from the library twice, and renewed it twice each time…a good thing, because although the book was enjoyable, it was a “mixed bag” – not something I really wanted to own.</p>
<p>^^^ Only one person ahead of you on the hold list? How can that be?</p>
<p>At the moment the hold list at my library:</p>
<p>Novel - 246 (38 copies)</p>
<p>Sound recording - 85 (8 copies)</p>
<p>Large print - 57 (16 copies)</p>
<p>I just ordered the book from Amazon.</p>
<p>And I’m now #83 on the hold list for Before I Go to Sleep and I placed my hold back in October. I started to remove my name but am curious to see how long it takes to get the book.</p>
<p>Anyway, Mary, count me in. Once again, thanks.</p>
<p>A couple of the advantages of living in what is essentially a blue collar town…affordable housing and a library where it’s pretty easy to get hold of new, popular books. :)</p>
<p>I just finished this a few days ago, and loved it! It’s about 850 pages, and took me about 2 1/2 weeks to read. But that was mostly because I was kind of busy during that time, plus I actually tried to drag out the reading some, because I didn’t want to get to the end – I was enjoying reading it that much! So, yes, a fairly fast read for such a long book.</p>
<p>I hope everyone enjoyed (and has recovered from ;)) their Christmas and New Year celebrations! This is just a reminder that 11/22/63 is our February book club selection, for anyone who is interested in joining us. Time to take down the Christmas tree and crack open a nice, long novel! There is still plenty of reading time–discussion begins February 1st.</p>
<p>I read it in about a week, and I’m a slowish reader. It was not my favorite book ever (I was a bit disappointed by the narrator’s “voice,” which often seemed excessively flippant), but it was very engaging.</p>
<p>Okay - I’m probably feeling out of sorts, somewhat fussy, a little particular, but … really … Jake Epping would not have seen a Lone Star flag with the words “Don’t Mess with Texas” on it in 1959. The “Don’t Mess with Texas” ad campaign (against littering) began in 1986 - yes, an ad campaign against littering.</p>
<p>Still, shame on Mr. King for this particular anachronism … in all caps no less on page 299. Unless he included it intentionally but still … he really shouldn’t mess with TX (icons). ;)</p>
<p>I’m enjoying the book and will finish in plenty of time. Easy read, for those of you still considering whether or not to pick it up.</p>
<p>There are a lot of little anachronisms in the book. I lived in Texas in 1963 and was 16 years old when Kennedy was assassinated.</p>
<p>(I must admit I didn’t notice the “Don’t Mess With Texas” mistake, though.)</p>
<p>For some reason, one thing that really rubbed me the wrong way was Sadie going out somewhere looking attractive in faded blue jeans. In that place and time, middle class people would only wear blue jeans on a camping trip or for washing the car or something like that. Nobody would have dreamed of attending any sort of event wearing faded blue jeans.</p>
<p>Anachronisms always surprise me in historical novels – if they jump out at us, why don’t they jump out at the author and/or his editor? And King’s research was supposed to be meticulous. Per Wikipedia, “King and longtime researcher Russ Dorr prepared for the novel by reading many historical documents and newspaper archives from the period, looking at clothing and appliance ads, sports scores and television listings. The book contains detailed minutia such as the 1958 price of a pint of root beer (10 cents) or a haircut (40 cents). King and Dorr traveled to Dallas where they visited Oswald’s apartment building (now a private residence), found the home of Gen. Edwin Walker (one of Oswald’s assassination targets), and had a private tour of the Sixth Floor Museum in the Texas School Book Depository.”</p>
<p>I remember that there were anachronisms in The Help as well. If I recall correctly, Kathryn Stockett was aware of them, but relatively unconcerned. Maybe these authors figure that if we’re carried along by the story, a few flawed details here and there won’t matter.</p>
<p>I’m about 3/4 of the way through and looking forward to discussion. I will be especially interested in NJTheatreMOM’s perspective. Age 16, in Texas, in 1963? You could have been one of George Amberson’s students! </p>
<p>That’s all I’m going to say until February 1st!</p>
<p>I agree ** Mary13** “I will be ** especially interested in NJTheatreMOM’s perspective**. Age 16, in Texas, in 1963? You could have been one of George Amberson’s students!”</p>
<p>Just finished the book and I too noticed the blue jeans. In my HS we weren’t allowed to wear blue jeans in 1972! It was only in 1970 (I think) that girls were allowed to wear pants at all.</p>
<p>I think in '63 they would have been called dungarees and would have looked quite different (bell bottoms hadn’t hit yet.)</p>
<p>Yeah, blue jeans were dark blue, and definitely not flared, and they were usually rolled neatly at the cuff. Boys wore cream-colored casual pants to school that they called “wheat jeans” (a shade lighter than khaki).</p>
<p>Stephen King grew up in Maine, but he is the same age as me. I’ll bet the clothing was similar there when he was a teen, and he’s either forgotten or doesn’t care.</p>
<p>Another thing I noticed in the book was yogurt for sale in Maine in 1958…hmm, I wonder. I first had yogurt in Philadelphia in the summer of 1967, and it seemed rather a sophisticated novelty at the time!</p>
</p>